Gems in Gem!

It took a while, but I'm back!  

I haven't abandoned the project. Sincere apologies; i had a lot to deal with.

But as they say, better late than never...

First and foremost, I would like to thank everyone who participated in whichever way or form. I wouldn't make it without you! Asante! Shukran! Thank you! Merci! Ero kamano!

It was a roller coaster ride; I had a lot to do and while the cups were easy to get since people either donated them or sent me money and all I had to do was drive to the nearest supermarket and buy them, the reusable pads were another tale altogether! I delayed in sending in the order. The seller was kind enough to not only send them by bus (this is so convenient and affordable) but to also throw in a few as a donation too!

They didn't get to Nairobi in time; they travelled roughly 686kms from Mtwapa to Kisumu, then we picked them up and got them to GEM (pronounced like g for goat but we truly are gems 😉).

The original plan was to arrive at about noon, get some rest, set up, practice and then meet the ladies between 4 and 5pm. You have to be flexible in the village, forget about African timers meaning being late. Time in the village is different. All depends on the season for example most people survive on subsistence farming hence during planting season no one’s available. The only constant thing is no one wakes up after 6am, they are up when the cock crows, so much to do, so little time and resources...

We had asked them to come on Sunday at 4pm. Generally, people rest a bit on Sundays that is after spending at the very least 3 hours in church, thanking God and praying for the right amount of rain, for jobs, for health. “Religion is HUGE back there” I say not this in jest. Every meeting and every meal begin and end with a prayer. 

The plan was to meet them after 4, not too early but not too late. Most of us rely on daylight, very few homes have electricity, and even when you do you kinda want to save and use it for emergencies, no one wants a high electricity bill yet the sun rises at about 6.30 and sets after 7pm, as far as I know none of us have running water but I digress..

So, set arrival time to 4, gives them time to arrive, for me to offer a small snack then at about 5pm I would explain why cups and how to use them and care for them, ensure they understand and have no questions. I assumed this would take about 30 minutes, allowing them to head home in time to prepare dinner and take care of their families /prepare for the week ahead. That was the plan but Jakki plans and God laughs!

I was exhausted, I had attended a welcome home party the night before, slept at 2am and was up and out of the house at 4am.  I travelled from Nairobi – Kisumu almost non-stop that Sunday, waited for and chased for the package before realizing (no one’s fault!) that their journey would take much longer! I ended up arriving in Gem after 5pm and I was in no shape despite catching a few winks in the car! It would be impossible to settle and deal with presenting them to their future recipients before nightfall. I didn’t want to do a shoddy job, so I decided to postpone the meeting to the next day Monday 26th.

Unfortunately, boarders had gone back to school so they missed out!

D Day 

Monday 26th, I was up at 7am, last one in the village I believe, anyway I prepared and then my cousin picked me up and we went back to Kisumu (about an hour’s drive from Gem) to pick up the package; I decided to run some errands too, because I didn’t know when next I would be going to the city. One thing led to another and before I knew it I was running late, AGAIN!!

I got back at about 4pm to find beautiful girls and women of all ages waiting for me; They were on time and eager to hear from. My mother had just said I was coming and wanted to see them, so much help!! I had had a long day and hadn't gotten time to prep and practice. To be honest, I hadn't gotten time to do anything at all! Yea, Heaven must have enjoyed the laugh so much they decided to extend it because they can!

Luckily, as I say umoja ni nguvu, unity is strength! My brother, sister, mum’s gardener and house help all dropped what they were doing and came to give me a hand. My cousin, a professional photographer, had decided to help by... yep, taking photos of us. He was quite helpful in setting things up. My audience was made up of different age groups, religious affiliations and cultural backgrounds. I realized that word choice, how I present myself and the project etc., was going to be relevant. Bear in mind this was all me, no one had asked for it. So basically, I was coming with a solution to a problem they have but I couldn’t know how they would react, I mean it could go either way! (I knew I could always donate elsewhere if need be) 

But I work best under pressure; improvising is an art I perfected ages ago! So, after setting everything up, drinking a glass of mango juice and water that my mum thrust into my hands--oh she was anxious—I got started. One, she was pretty proud of the woman I have become, and (2) she was afraid I would say/do something wrong and she'd be left to handle the mess… The thing is I never really processed stuff, I just thought hey I am going home and I need to help my community, what can I do… The idea came spontaneously and I ran with it! Let me also just say it was fulfilling, humbling and I don’t think I will stop there; I will however strive to do better next time! But! Let’s go back to The sessionS…

 

  

A little confession!

Actually let us back track a little more first, after I had gotten a number of ads out, mostly on Facebook as I didn’t know where to begin from and I figured you have some friends hopefully they will help spread the word, I got numerous calls, most if not all quite encouraging. I have never blushed so hard in my life! Caroline A was the first one to send me in panic mode but also to suggest the reusable pads. She asked me whether I had used the cups, of course I hadn’t but a few years ago I had helped kids pass exams without speaking proper French (story for another day!). It couldn’t be so hard. I see she said, well I will tell you my experience and she told me the good, the bad and the ugly. She reminded me that I was going to be dealing with “shy” people so I needed to know…she suggested washable pads. 2 other people raised concerns with the cups. Are you sure the villagers will use them? Well was I? I was. I heard their concerns and I am glad they raised them, as these helped organize my plans and got me thinking seriously about the kids leading to the birth of : books/ a library and toys for the kids.

With this In mind, I decided to start with the mothers, most were young, aged 19-28. They were receptive, anxious but ready to listen and learn. I cracked jokes. Yes, I am capable of being funny; to be honest I was equally anxious, but all went perfectly well. It took a few minutes to get them to relax and engage but they did! We spoke of women’s hustles, they told me that the government is trying, the kids get free sanitary towels once in a while, but it isn’t enough. They embraced the idea of having this thing that will save them time, money and is eco-friendly. They really teased me about this and unknowingly got something started…

Next i moved to the young teens, 12-17. I decided to give them the washable pads and gave them a lesson too. I fully incorporated the environment and hygiene part. Their eyes, their eyes told it all. While the environmental factor seemed vital to their mothers, empowerment seemed to be the carrier for them.

Then I took in the 7- to 11-year-olds and just had a small lesson. How things spiraled into lessons about womanhood, empowerment, the environment I don't know!

The next day more came, and the day after, interestingly the crowd kept growing and those who'd had lessons would join in, explain things to the others, set up stuff. 

We'd always have time to chat and inspire each other. Finally, I was glad that I hadn't gotten time to plan, that things happened naturally, that I had a great photographer. That I trusted them and that they trusted me. I got two mentees/proteges. I will hopefully share my journey with them one day, I hope it will be a beautiful one. If it doesn’t go beyond then I will still be glad to have met them, to have inspired them, to have been taught by them to have been part of their journey and they part of mine.

The reception. 

I think we tend to project ourselves in situations. I always try to look at things from different angles, I said I try not that I always succeed. One group was intimidated, by me, by the cups but with a little explanation and patience they not only got it, but got us talking of other things and exchanging lots of information. We ended up having these discussions where one would raise something (not necessarily cups related) and we would respond as a group. They realized that within them was a wealth of knowledge that they had not been exploiting simply because it had never crossed their minds to talk to each other about such things! Barter trade was revived in these meetings.  

I learnt a lot, and I am definitely going to continue with this project. I still don’t know how. I plan to continue with small changes if and when I can. I hope to make a bigger impact come July 2020.

In pursuit for the perfect 💎

I had put off writing this partly because I had a lot going on, but mostly because I have been hoping to capture the right words to describe these meetings, alas I haven’t. Trust me, I wasn’t ready for it, neither were they, the connection, but more importantly the realization on both sides that we can do more, we can get better, we can’t stop there… It was a beautiful teaching and learning process. This may sound cheesy, but we were connected, really, and it warmed my heart. 

Last but not least, thank you for your support.

Special thanks to Kelly, who took her time to show me how to start a blog, share the information, collect the cups. I don’t know; she has been by my side every step of the journey!

Kelly M. I was about to give up and you showed up at the right time, thank you!

Seline Ochieng, I wouldn’t have gotten the pads without you, nor would I have looked so beautiful without the lovely African jewelry you sent me 😍 . You are a God-sent Asante!

Carlisto Ochieng, you truly are good people, thank you for bringing your camera along and filling that gap. The photos are amazing.
Stephanie P for checking my translations and cheering me on !

Alias Suzanne Touré for making videos for me; I did the explaining and would leave them watching the video in Luo Swahili and/or English and write notes if need be at the end, sort of like a personal recap moment for all.

Helen G thanks for the Toys...

I am because you are! We are because you are!

Thank you to all who donated; we succeeded because you dug into your pockets and gave to us. Somewhere in Gem, a young woman or a young girl is smiling because of you. Somewhere you have changed a family’s/woman’s life, because what seems like nothing really is a lot. And guess what? You did good to mother nature too! Less toxic waste out there.

Thank you for taking your time to read this, I appreciate it!

I hope you will continue this journey with me in whichever way and form.

Want to hear more? Feel free to subscribe or send me a message or better yet meet me up for a drink. I can’t wait to share more about this. I could of course go on and on about it!😉😉

Carlisto Ochieng works for Eclectic media ; great affordable photoshoots!

For the most beautiful , convenient, reliable reusable pads : Contact +254798652815 Mtomondoni Mtwapa.

*videos in Dholuo and Kiswahili (Luo and Swahili for some)